Warren Buffett Warns of Upcoming "Megacatastrophe"

Megacatastrophe

Famed investor Warren Buffett warned in his annual letter of a "megacatastrophe," which he said will cause unprecedented havoc not just to victims but to the financial world as well.

"A major catastrophe that will dwarf hurricanes Katrina and Michael will occur – perhaps tomorrow, perhaps many decades from now," the Berkshire Hathaway CEO wrote. "'The Big One' may come from a traditional source, such as a hurricane or earthquake, or it may be a total surprise involving, say, a cyber attack having disastrous consequences beyond anything insurers now contemplate."

The Big One

Beyond speculating that the the "big one" could be an extreme weather event or a massive cybersecurity breach, Buffett deferred specifics to the idea that the world needs to be prepared for a civilization-shaking catastrophe — except to argue that such a disaster is inevitable.

Business Insider, though, dug into the concept of the "Big One" by digging up a 2015 New Yorker essay in which science journalist Kathryn Shultz wrote that the "hand of a geological clock is somewhere in its slow sweep," and that "seismologists are looking at their watches, wondering how long we have, and what we will do, before geological time catches up to our own."

Next Day

However, Buffett remained optimistic about Berkshire Hathaway's outlook after disaster strikes.

"When such a mega-catastrophe strikes, we will get our share of the losses and they will be big – very big," he wrote. "Unlike many other insurers, however, we will be looking to add business the next day."

READ MORE: Warren Buffett warns of natural or human-made 'megacatastrophe,' and says our losses will be huge [Business Insisder]

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